Hippocampus in Alzheimer’s disease: a 3-year follow-up MRI study

Background: Due to the progressive nature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), it has been proposed that serial imaging studies tracking the course of progression might improve the diagnostic accuracy of AD. Methods: Longitudinal changes in hippocampal volumes were evaluated using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) over a period of 3 years in 27 AD patients and 8 control subjects. Results: A statistically nonsignificant trend towards accelerated volume loss in the AD group compared to control subjects was observed. During the study period, the average shrinkage of the hippocampal volume ranged from −2.2% to −5.8% in control subjects, and from −2.3% to −15.6% in AD patients. Conclusions: The observed changes at an individual level were small, and within the accuracy range of the measurements. Therefore, serial MRI of the hippocampus did not offer any advantage over a single MRI to support the diagnosis of AD in this study sample.